She broke her opponent's serve in the first game and never looked back. It didn't take long before Stephens completed a 7-5, 2-6, 6-1 victory that pushed her into the quarterfinals.

What happened between the second and third set?

"Sometimes I lose a little bit of concentration here and there, but I think I regrouped well and I think that's really all that matters," Stephens said. "I just tried to be aggressive, I just kind of cleared my mind."

Despite outward appearances — her body language displayed a high level of frustration — Stephens insists she was not moping. In fact, she said, she remained positive and simply needed to tune in to the match mentally.

"I might have looked so horrible and so disgusted, but how I came out and played in the third set was probably how I was really feeling," Stephens said.

A year ago, when she was just breaking into the top 50 in the world rankings, she might have lost a similar match. But Stephens has steadily improved, rising from No. 38 in the world at the end of 2012 to No. 17 in the latest rankings. She was a semifinalist at the Australian Open and reached the quarterfinals at Wimbledon.

At 20, she is learning the mental side of the game. Physically, she is clearly gifted — she scored points with an array of winners against Goerges, displaying a strong forehand and an ability to hit shots from all over the court.

Stephens consulted with her coach after the second set, but there was no grand strategic session. It was simply a matter of a talented player relaxing and focusing.

"On the insides, I'm kind of just like [looking] for the next point," Stephens said.

The crowd was behind Stephens and she fed off the energy. As she has risen in the rankings, Stephens has become an American favorite and will no doubt be a popular player at next week's U.S. Open.

The pressure of carrying the hope of American tennis on her back doesn't seem to bother Stephens.

"I think it just comes with the territory," Stephens said. "As you get better and as you improve, you win more, you win tournaments, you just make bigger improvements, bigger steps, definitely there's always going to be a label and there's always going to be someone who has an opinion about American tennis. But I think, honestly, you just have to kind of go with it. … You've got to kind of go with it and accept the responsibility"

Stephens has never won a tournament and she'll need to get through four-time champion Caroline Wozniacki, her quarterfinal opponent Thursday night. It's a meeting of marquee players — perhaps the two most popular players in the field. They've played once, with Wozniacki winning in straight sets at Indian Wells in 2011.

"I just remember after the match, at the handshake, she had the most perfect smile," Stephens said. "Like, a picture-perfect [smile]. It was on like a website, like the WTA website, a picture of us shaking hands and she just had the most perfect smile. And I was like, 'Wow, like is that what it looks like when you win?' "